The Attorney General announced that she has reached a settlement agreement to resolve the complaint filed by her office alleging elder abuse and consumer fraud by the owners and operators of the assisted living facility formerly known as Heritage Village Assisted Living. In a consent judgement, the Attorney General asked the court to permanently bar Gary Langendoen, Tracy Langendoen, and any companies owned by the California real estate investors from providing healthcare services to vulnerable adults in Arizona. They will also pay $100,000 in civil penalties. The lawsuit against Heritage Village alleged multiple violations of the Arizona Consumer Fraud Act and the Adult Protective Services Act, which allows the Attorney General to sue to prevent the abuse, neglect, or exploitation of vulnerable adults. In addition to the lawsuit, Attorney General Mayes asked the court to place the Heritage Village facility into receivership, the first time an Attorney General has exercised that authority since the legislature added it to the Adult Protective Services Act in 1989.
When the court appointed Peter Davis to act as receiver in April 2024, the Heritage Village facility faced many serious problems. Numerous residents had suffered violence and sexual assault by other residents and staff. The entire facility was on the brink of permanent closure, facing revocation of its operating license and foreclosure by its mortgage lender. The Attorney General’s lawsuit and subsequent receivership resulted in immediate improvements to resident care and prevented a complete closure of the facility, which would have left dozens of elderly residents and their families scrambling for new accommodations. Last year the court approved the sale of the facility to new owners focused on resident care.